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Bielema enjoying NFL stint: 'It's just purely football'

Nelson Chenault / USA TODAY Sports

Bret Bielema is having so much fun with the New England Patriots that the former Arkansas head coach doesn't appear in a rush to return to the college ranks.

"The thing I love about football in the NFL is you go to work at 6 a.m. and you leave at 9 (p.m.) and it's nothing but football," Bielema told Dennis Dodd of CBS Sports. "It's just purely football."

Bielema, one of the most entertaining soundbites in the NCAA, spent five seasons at the helm of the Razorbacks, posting a 29-34 record before his firing. He served as the head coach at Wisconsin for seven years before that, leading the Badgers to three Big Ten championships.

The 48-year-old joined the Patriots in an unspecified role after his dismissal from Arkansas. The move, he noted, has been eye-opening.

"It's a whole different way to coach (in the NFL)," he said. "I understand once they go to that level, coaches don't ever go back.

"One of the most 'a-ha' moments was one of the first drills I did during OTAs. I had 11 (defensive) guys go through the drills. 'Holy cow, these guys are good.' These are the elite of your elite."

Bielema has been linked recently to Kansas, as the Jayhawks hired his former boss at Arkansas, Jeff Long, as their athletic director in an effort to spark the wilting football program.

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